Another "should I buy nMP" thread..but need specific answer

[koban4max]

Sorry for this...but i'm not finding the specific answer that i'm looking...or at least i'm not sure what kind answer i'm looking for...

Yes..this is another "should I buy the new MP?"
I need it for editing/music/some games (yes I know about not optimize crap)/ and daily stuff (web surfing, office, and etc).

now, i think i can drop up to 5k for this product....
I'm just not sure if I should it get at this point..mainly because of this new processor xeon-e5 v.2 i'm hearing about.

I can wait little longer if that's the case....
*Please don't give me "it depends" answer...not looking for that.

1) Should I even consider buying this at this point.
2) Anything you can tell me about the current state of the next processor?
3) If so, will it be for nMP? If not, ...4)
4) What's your recommendation of setup of the nMP? (meaning how I should I custom build this from apple store?)
5) What are these problems that i'm seeing from other people's threads...
(ex: display problems...booting...extreme jerkiness from scroll in safari...(i'm getting this example other people's threads)...point..did they fix the common or major problems?

thx.

 

[MacProCard]

4) What's your recommendation of setup of the nMP? (meaning how I should I custom build this from apple store?)
5) What are these problems that i'm seeing from other people's threads...
(ex: display problems...booting...extreme jerkiness from scroll in safari...(i'm getting this example other people's threads)...point..did they fix the common or major problems?

thx.

I'd buy from B&H. The have the just about every configuration type possible in stock. Plus saves you money on taxes if you don't live in NY. They also sell the Crucial memory kit upgrades as well.

I run dual 27" Thunderbolt displays with absolutely no problem.

 

[fuchsdh]

Sorry for this...but i'm not finding the specific answer that i'm looking...or at least i'm not sure what kind answer i'm looking for...

Yes..this is another "should I buy the new MP?"
I need it for editing/music/some games (yes I know about not optimize crap)/ and daily stuff (web surfing, office, and etc).

now, i think i can drop up to 5k for this product....
I'm just not sure if I should it get at this point..mainly because of this new processor xeon-e5 v.2 i'm hearing about.

I can wait little longer if that's the case....
*Please don't give me "it depends" answer...not looking for that.

1) Should I even consider buying this at this point.
2) Anything you can tell me about the current state of the next processor?
3) If so, will it be for nMP? If not, ...4)
4) What's your recommendation of setup of the nMP? (meaning how I should I custom build this from apple store?)
5) What are these problems that i'm seeing from other people's threads...
(ex: display problems...booting...extreme jerkiness from scroll in safari...(i'm getting this example other people's threads)...point..did they fix the common or major problems?

thx.

People get "it depends" answers because it always is up to you to decide ultimately what you value most, and that changes the equation The choice is ultimately yours, as much as I like spending other people's money...

1) Sure. The "new" new Mac Pros are supposition on our part. We don't know what the upgrades will be. You want a new computer now, get what you can get now. You could still be waiting half a year or longer for a revision.

2) Theoretically we'll get Haswell-E processors, which would most likely mean upping core counts, better power efficiency and DDR4 RAM, so decent upgrades but not a huge shift like Broadwell is promising. That stuff will definitely hit the nMP earlier than desktop stuff.

4) Depends on your setup. We'd need a lot more info to make an informed recommendation. What kinds of games would you want to play (are these going to be OS X native or are they going to be via Bootcamp?) What NLE do you use? If you use Final Cut Pro X you're going to get a lot more use out of boosting the GPUs than if you use, say, Premiere. If you're doing Bootcamp gaming the GPU upgrades are not going to be as essential since you can use CrossFire to make use of both GPUs compared to just one by default for most games in OS X (alternatively, you may want to max the GPU upgrades now if you want to be playing difficult games in the future, or you want future-proofing as we're not sure how upgrades either from Apple or aftermarket will shake out.). If you offload most of your media to a DAS like me you could probably do fine with just 256GB of flash, but if you prefer having lots of stuff local a bigger disk will be essential.

5) I can't speak to this, other than to say the issues people present are a minority of shipments (which is no consolation if you happen to get a computer with those issues.)

 

[airdrop]

That's funny, becouse it always depend of your needs.

I just ordered and waiting on my little bastard, so I can tell you based on my example, I do mostly stuff for web (photoshop, after effects) professionally. After hours doing some editing (since I love dslr video stuff, mostly only HD) and do some photography.

Quad-core processor - because I don't want to wait until new processors arrive (can be to long), so i decided take base model. I really wanted the 6-core one, but I prefer save the 500$ and put this money on 8 or 10 core unit after some time (5-8 months).

D700 - I always taking strongest options for gpu, I did that with my previous laptops (mbpx3), and learned that is always good decision.

64GB RAM (ordered from OWC, from apple just 12GB).

512GB SSD - because price for 1TB is to high (at the moment), and I have external storage (2x4TB via USB 3.0, not Tb).

So this setup (I feel) will be perfect to start with
I wish you conscious decision.
Cheers!

 

[koban4max]

People get "it depends" answers because it always is up to you to decide ultimately what you value most, and that changes the equation The choice is ultimately yours, as much as I like spending other people's money...

1) Sure. The "new" new Mac Pros are supposition on our part. We don't know what the upgrades will be. You want a new computer now, get what you can get now. You could still be waiting half a year or longer for a revision.

2) Theoretically we'll get Haswell-E processors, which would most likely mean upping core counts, better power efficiency and DDR4 RAM, so decent upgrades but not a huge shift like Broadwell is promising. That stuff will definitely hit the nMP earlier than desktop stuff.

4) Depends on your setup. We'd need a lot more info to make an informed recommendation. What kinds of games would you want to play (are these going to be OS X native or are they going to be via Bootcamp?) What NLE do you use? If you use Final Cut Pro X you're going to get a lot more use out of boosting the GPUs than if you use, say, Premiere. If you're doing Bootcamp gaming the GPU upgrades are not going to be as essential since you can use CrossFire to make use of both GPUs compared to just one by default for most games in OS X (alternatively, you may want to max the GPU upgrades now if you want to be playing difficult games in the future, or you want future-proofing as we're not sure how upgrades either from Apple or aftermarket will shake out.). If you offload most of your media to a DAS like me you could probably do fine with just 256GB of flash, but if you prefer having lots of stuff local a bigger disk will be essential.

5) I can't speak to this, other than to say the issues people present are a minority of shipments (which is no consolation if you happen to get a computer with those issues.)

Thank you for responding:

1) One of the factors that I consider in decision is the majority's choice. I totally agree in that the future is unknown. Isn't there any slight clues or something that indicates that newer version might come soon?

2) I'm assuming that this nMP would be the last ddr3, yes?

4) Are you talking something d500? or Specifically D700? and I'm currently using FCP 7...i'm not sure how effective it's going to be. I'm planning to get FCP X eventually...but not now....

gaming: probably shooting games...bioshock or whatever... and i have emulators to play with..so it's not a problem..however...who knows..in the future..

I do photo editing...adobe stuff...cs5 specifically..

5) i'm sure they can replace it if it's a problem right? I just bring it to the store?

----------

I'd buy from B&H. The have the just about every configuration type possible in stock. Plus saves you money on taxes if you don't live in NY. They also sell the Crucial memory kit upgrades as well.

I run dual 27" Thunderbolt displays with absolutely no problem.

is that better or getting education price from apple?

----------

That's funny, becouse it always depend of your needs.

I just ordered and waiting on my little bastard, so I can tell you based on my example, I do mostly stuff for web (photoshop, after effects) professionally. After hours doing some editing (since I love dslr video stuff, mostly only HD) and do some photography.

Quad-core processor - because I don't want to wait until new processors arrive (can be to long), so i decided take base model. I really wanted the 6-core one, but I prefer save the 500$ and put this money on 8 or 10 core unit after some time (5-8 months).

D700 - I always taking strongest options for gpu, I did that with my previous laptops (mbpx3), and learned that is always good decision.

64GB RAM (ordered from OWC, from apple just 12GB).

512GB SSD - because price for 1TB is to high (at the moment), and I have external storage (2x4TB via USB 3.0, not Tb).

So this setup (I feel) will be perfect to start with
I wish you conscious decision.
Cheers!

lol thanks for response...I know what you saying about depends...but one of the factors of choosing is what majority would go for.

Quad core: I see what your saying..I currently have '09 mp quad....but i'm not sure it will handle editing...rendering...

D700: will do

memory: 12gb... okay i'll get it from them.

SSD: is it replaceable or upgradable or exchangeable? I have SSD EVO on my 09 mp.

 

[propower]

I have owned the top of the line 27" i7 imac since OCT and have just done a BTO nMP (6C, D300, 512G, 32G). This new machine is 50% more $$ than the imac. The whys for me - pro audio use
- 32G ram direct from apple is ~$125 more than ordering less and doing 3rd party and trading Mac Ram in - if it ever needs service the first thing apple will say is put the original RAM back in - if you hang on to the original the difference in 3rd party savings at 32G is like $40. 64G is a whole different story -
- D300 for me since I care not about graphics card speed - these are already way faster than I ever need.

- 50% more CPU power (6C vs 4C)
- Fastest internal SSD on mac at this time
- Fastest RAM on mac at this time
- Best heatsinking on current macs by far
- Quietest mac under load at this time
- 3 separate TB2 channels (6 ports) for dedicated high speed expansion (2 more channels than any other mac at this time)
- Dual Ethernet (Control surfaces to one - internet to other)

There is nothing wrong with the imac and it has never fallen over on my tasks - I just like the pluses the nMP will bring and can afford it.

 

[koban4max]

I'd buy from B&H. The have the just about every configuration type possible in stock. Plus saves you money on taxes if you don't live in NY. They also sell the Crucial memory kit upgrades as well.

I run dual 27" Thunderbolt displays with absolutely no problem.

only problem is that i have 4k gift card.

----------

I have owned the top of the line 27" i7 imac since OCT and have just done a BTO nMP (6C, D300, 512G, 32G). This new machine is 50% more $$ than the imac. The whys for me - pro audio use

- 50% more CPU power (6C vs 4C)
- Fastest internal SSD on mac at this time
- Fastest RAM on mac at this time
- Best heatsinking on current macs by far
- Quietest mac under load at this time
- 3 separate TB2 channels (6 ports) for dedicated high speed expansion (2 more channels than any other mac at this time)
- Dual Ethernet (Control surfaces to one - internet to other)

There is nothing wrong with the imac and it has never fallen over on my tasks - I just like the pluses the nMP will bring and can afford it.

I hear ya...and I may consider this as an alternative...
but i really like the nMP design...although there are drawbacks to it...

 

[AidenShaw]

...mainly because of this new processor xeon-e5 v.2 i'm hearing about...

2) Theoretically we'll get Haswell-E processors, which would most likely mean upping core counts, better power efficiency and DDR4 RAM, so decent upgrades but not a huge shift like Broadwell is promising. That stuff will definitely hit the nMP earlier than desktop stuff.

The current MP6,1 processors are Ivy Bridge-EP (E5-1600 v2 and E5-2600 v2).

Xeon Haswell processors (E3-1200 v3) are out and have been shipping for over a year.

The upcoming processor for the MP6,1 will be Haswell-EP (E5-1600 v3 and E5-2600 v3).

The Haswell-E processors are the Core-i7 5xxx series on the 2011 pin socket.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/LGA_2011#Desktop_.28Sandy_Bridge-E.2FIvy_Bridge-E.2FHaswell-E.29

 

[koban4max]

The current MP6,1 processors are Ivy Bridge-EP (E5-1600 v2 and E5-2600 v2).

Xeon Haswell processors (E3-1200 v3) are out and have been shipping for over a year.

The upcoming processor for the MP6,1 will be Haswell-EP (E5-1600 v3 and E5-2600 v3).

The Haswell-E processors are the Core-i7 5xxx series on the 2011 pin socket.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/LGA_2011#Desktop_.28Sandy_Bridge-E.2FIvy_Bridge-E.2FHaswell-E.29

anytime soon?

 

[airdrop]

Thank you for responding:
Quad core: ....but i'm not sure it will handle editing...rendering...

That is the question!, but I can suffer a bit and wait for better options

Thank you for responding:
SSD: is it replaceable or upgradable or exchangeable? I have SSD EVO on my 09 mp.

Yes (easy to replace).

 

[handsome pete]

anytime soon?

As far as we know, it's scheduled for the fall. However we have no idea what Apple's plans are.

 

[fuchsdh]

The current MP6,1 processors are Ivy Bridge-EP (E5-1600 v2 and E5-2600 v2).

Xeon Haswell processors (E3-1200 v3) are out and have been shipping for over a year.

The upcoming processor for the MP6,1 will be Haswell-EP (E5-1600 v3 and E5-2600 v3).

The Haswell-E processors are the Core-i7 5xxx series on the 2011 pin socket.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/LGA_2011#Desktop_.28Sandy_Bridge-E.2FIvy_Bridge-E.2FHaswell-E.29

I meant Haswell-EP. This comes up so often, Intel should really name stuff better.

Anyhow, to the OP—upgrading to either Premiere or Final Cut Pro X will make a huge difference irrespective of hardware; with the nMP the $300 on FCPX and the time you spend acclimating it will be worth more than the equivalent dollar amount in hardware improvements.

Since you're looking for majority consensus: when I get my pro I'm going to be using it for the odd game (Blizzard titles, Dota, Minecraft with heavy mods, etc.) not on a console, and heavy After Effects work with some editing on FCPX. My setup would be 6-core (best compromise between single threaded and multi threaded performance), D700s (might as well max my possible performance, and since you're getting the GPUs for much less than MSRP for the workstation cards they're really affordable), 64GB through OWC for multiprocessing settings in After Effects, and the stock 256GB for boot (since my music, VMs, and other media are all on a 16TB Lacie RAID5, and with the nMP I'll get USB3 speeds from it, which is good enough to keep all that stuff offloaded.) I'm personally going to wait until the next gen because I don't need the computer right now (purchased an upgraded a used 3,1 last year to tide me over), I'm interested to see what upgrades will be available and what speed differences will be, and I have a personal policy of never buying the first revision of a new product.

 

[koban4max]

I meant Haswell-EP. This comes up so often, Intel should really name stuff better.

Anyhow, to the OP—upgrading to either Premiere or Final Cut Pro X will make a huge difference irrespective of hardware; with the nMP the $300 on FCPX and the time you spend acclimating it will be worth more than the equivalent dollar amount in hardware improvements.

Since you're looking for majority consensus: when I get my pro I'm going to be using it for the odd game (Blizzard titles, Dota, Minecraft with heavy mods, etc.) not on a console, and heavy After Effects work with some editing on FCPX. My setup would be 6-core (best compromise between single threaded and multi threaded performance), D700s (might as well max my possible performance, and since you're getting the GPUs for much less than MSRP for the workstation cards they're really affordable), 64GB through OWC for multiprocessing settings in After Effects, and the stock 256GB for boot (since my music, VMs, and other media are all on a 16TB Lacie RAID5, and with the nMP I'll get USB3 speeds from it, which is good enough to keep all that stuff offloaded.) I'm personally going to wait until the next gen because I don't need the computer right now (purchased an upgraded a used 3,1 last year to tide me over), I'm interested to see what upgrades will be available and what speed differences will be, and I have a personal policy of never buying the first revision of a new product.

I like that setup...about that 256gb drive...since it's replaceable 256 might be good..to save?

 

[handsome pete]

I like that setup...about that 256gb drive...since it's replaceable 256 might be good..to save?

As far as I know, no one is selling a replacement drive for it yet. So while it may be easy to access the part and remove it, what are you going to replace it with? Besides, PCIe flash is expensive so I'm not exactly sure how much you'll be saving when a third party solution does present itself.

 

[koban4max]

As far as I know, no one is selling a replacement drive for it yet. So while it may be easy to access the part and remove it, what are you going to replace it with? Besides, PCIe flash is expensive so I'm not exactly sure how much you'll be saving when a third party solution does present itself.

then i guess i'm stuck 512 gb then...

 

[AidenShaw]

As far as we know, it's scheduled for the fall. However we have no idea what Apple's plans are.

The Haswell-E processor is a next-generation platform and could be in the shops by September 14, 2014 this could coincide with an announcement at Intel's upcoming IDF 14 in San Francisco. IDF runs September 9-11.

According to a leaked document was posted by VR-Zone's Chinese language site at least three Core i7 chips based on Haswell-E will debut on September 14, along with Intel's upcoming X99 chipset.

The three Core i7 parts mentioned include the Core i7 5960X (8-core, 20MB L3 cache, 3GHz-3.5GHz), Core i7 5930K (6-core, 15MB L3 cache, 3.5GHz-3.7GHz), and the Core i7 5820K (6-core, 15MB cache, 3.3GHz-3.6GHz). All three reportedly carry a TDP of 140W and support Hyper-Threading.

Read more: http://news.techeye.net/chips/haswell-e-headed-to-the-shops-in-september#ixzz36uCxkWrS

Of course, this is the Haswell-E, not the Haswell-EP. But it does point out that Intel is close to volume production of LGA2011 Haswell's with 40 PCIe lanes.

My sales sources at HP and Dell are saying October for E5-x6xx v3 systems to be available.

 

[koban4max]

Of course, this is the Haswell-E, not the Haswell-EP. But it does point out that Intel is close to volume production of LGA2011 Haswell's with 40 PCIe lanes.

My sales sources at HP and Dell are saying October for E5-x6xx v3 systems to be available.

Significant i would say....

but the point being...i just hope there's no regret whether buy '13 model.

 

[hassiman]

nMacPro config

If you are just doing photo editing in CS5 or CS6 and/or LR5 then even the base nMP is overkill. I am a PS power user with huge scan files... approx 1.2GB each with lots of layers. My nMP has 4 Core, 512GB SSD and 16GB RAM with the D300 cards. It is VERY VERY fast. I put my upgrade money into VERY fast external storage... mainly CalDigit T3 TB HDs. When the cost of SSDs comes down the CalDigits will also accept them.

If you were into rendering 4K video of LOTS of huge vid files in Premier or final cut then your parameters should be different. But for still work even the base nMP should be more than fine for quite a few years....

 

[koban4max]

If you are just doing photo editing in CS5 or CS6 and/or LR5 then even the base nMP is overkill. I am a PS power user with huge scan files... approx 1.2GB each with lots of layers. My nMP has 4 Core, 512GB SSD and 16GB RAM with the D300 cards. It is VERY VERY fast. I put my upgrade money into VERY fast external storage... mainly CalDigit T3 TB HDs. When the cost of SSDs comes down the CalDigits will also accept them.

If you were into rendering 4K video of LOTS of huge vid files in Premier or final cut then your parameters should be different. But for still work even the base nMP should be more than fine for quite a few years....

you guys are great....thank you guys for helping me out.
I'm more of overall type..meaning i do video editing/adobe stuff/ and general surfing guy....and music..which i know is very much overkill.

the point that kills me the most is whether it's coming out with newer updated version...

I had this remorse experience before with mp 09
i went to buy mp quad 09 when few months they had 2010 version out...

 

[AidenShaw]

the point that kills me the most is whether it's coming out with newer updated version...

You'll never buy anything if you think about the "better thing coming".

When your current system has become a pain point, you should buy now even if something better is a few months away.

I knew that Haswell-EP is coming - but at the start of April I got a new Dell T3610 with E5-1650v2 (same hex-core as the base 6 core Apple MP6,1, but with 8 DIMM slots, 6 internal drive slots and a bucket of PCIe slots).

I bought, even knowing that better was coming, because my current Core i7 940 had a hard limit of 24 GiB of RAM - and that was a critical problem. The T3610 officially supports 128 GiB (should be 256 GiB soon) - and I started with 80 GiB.

If your current system is causing you pain, buy now. Don't endure several more months of pain.

 

[koban4max]

You'll never buy anything if you think about the "better thing coming".

When your current system has become a pain point, you should buy now even if something better is a few months away.

I knew that Haswell-EP is coming - but at the start of April I got a new Dell T3610 with E5-1650v2 (same hex-core as the base 6 core Apple MP6,1, but with 8 DIMM slots, 6 internal drive slots and a bucket of PCIe slots).

I bought, even knowing that better was coming, because my current Core i7 940 had a hard limit of 24 GiB of RAM - and that was a critical problem. The T3610 officially supports 128 GiB (should be 256 GiB soon) - and I started with 80 GiB.

If your current system is causing you pain, buy now. Don't endure several more months of pain.

That's the truth.